Alejandro Davidovich Fokina becomes only the third player without an ATP tour title to defeat Novak Djokovic since 2006

Novak Djokovic's return to action did not go according to plan as the World No. 1 crashed out of Monte-Carlo in his opening match against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.

In the process, Davidovich Fokina became only the third player without an ATP title to his name to have defeated the Serb since 2006. The other two players on the list are Hyeon Chung of South Korea and fellow Serbian Filip Krajinovic.

Hyeon Chung's win against Djokovic came at the 2018 Australian Open, where the South Korean beat the Serbian in the last 16 in straight sets. Chung went on to reach his maiden Grand Slam semifinal, where he retired in the second set against Roger Federer due to blisters on his feet.

Meanwhile, Filip Krajinovic beat the World No. 1 at the Serbia Open in 2010, with Novak Djokovic retiring from the match in the second set due to injury.

There was significant uncertainty surrounding Djokovic's schedule due to the fact that he is unvaccinated against COVID-19. The Serb's unvaccinated status prevented him from participating in tournaments in Australia and the US. Djokovic has competed in only two tournaments so far this year, losing to Jiri Vesely in the quarterfinals in Dubai and Davidovich Fokina in the second round in Monte-Carlo.

Novak Djokovic keeps his hold on the World No. 1 spot despite early loss in Monte-Carlo

Djokovic in action against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina

Despite being knocked out of the Monte-Carlo Masters in the second round and dropping 90 points he was defending from last year, Novak Djokovic will continue to be ranked World No. 1. World No. 2 Daniil Medvedev is currently just 10 points behind Djokovic, but will drop 180 points from his run to the semifinals in 2019. The Russian is not competing this year due to a hernia.

The likes of Alexander Zverev and Rafael Nadal are hot on the heels of Djokovic and Medvedev. A victory at the event will move the German within 250 points of clinching the World No. 1 spot.